Valentine's Day
by The Raider
Summary: Willow's having a terrible Valentine's Day...until a certain someone shows up and makes things better... Based on a prompt from the Willowy Goodness Site. Oneshot.


**Credit for the prompt goes to the Willowy Goodness Site. Idea is _not _mine, and I don't want to have anyone thinking I stole it. Gotta give credit where credit is due :) Said prompt was: **Willow's depressed about spending Valentine's Day alone, but someone tries to cheer her up. Who? How?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy or any of the characters. They belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy**

* * *

**Valentine's Day**

As she made her way through the chaos that surrounded the last class of the day, Willow sighed. The fact that it was Valentine's Day didn't matter, considering that she had no-one to spend it with…not anymore, at least. As she thought about how she had spent the holiday the previous year, the red-head felt a fresh dose of pain sink into her heart. It hurt to even think about Oz, especially considering how happy the two of them had been only months ago. Seeing seemingly everyone around her involved and happy only served to make that pain come back even stronger.

_Everybody_ around her was happy. Xander and Anya, Buffy and Riley, even Giles probably had someone that he was seeing behind all of their backs. Wouldn't surprise her, considering how involving any relationship in the Slaying routine would be putting them at risk. Love wasn't something that went together with vampires…even if Buffy and Angel had had something together that she knew was lacking in the Slayer's current relationship with Riley.

Passing a kissing couple, the Witch looked away, her hands shoved into her pockets as her fingers played with some of the loose change that was floating around inside her jeans. She tried her best not to frown at anyone who was enjoying the holiday, considering that it could be considered rude or mean. Still, the idea of going back to the dorm and going to sleep was a welcomed one. More than anything, she wanted the day to be over with. Seeing everyone having something she was lacking at the moment wasn't something that was going to keep her in a chipper mood.

Turning the corner, she found yet another couple passing by, the two of them holding hands and smiling at each other. Casting her green eyes' gaze somewhere else, the red-head walked by them and continued on her way. Beginning to recite spells inside her brain, she tried every tactic she could possibly think of in order to keep her mind off of the seemingly endless amount of happy couples that were swarming around her like bugs to a lamp. _Come on, happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts…_

"Andy, it's wonderful! I love it!"

"Happy Valentine's Day, baby." Closing her eyes, Willow made her way past another couple just as they embraced each other, the two of them swooning over the diamond ring that had been presented to the girl. _Alright, repetitiveness starting to show here…_

"What did Chris get you, Anne?"

"Just some chocolates. How about you?"

"A card and a dinner reservation. I wasn't expecting anything, so I guess that's a plus."

"Just gotta get out of this hallway…" Finally giving up on reaching the room, the red-head made a sharp left towards the door that led to the outside of the building. As the sunlight and slight breeze met her skin, she pulled her jacket a little tighter around her shoulders and made her way down the staircase. There were less people out here, but a few couples still lingered, their conversations and images assaulting her mind with their general Valentine's Day-ness. Quickening her pace slightly, Willow left the concrete sidewalk, and headed towards a deserted tree that lay near the edge of the Campus Property. Despite how nice it was outside, many of the couples had decided to stay inside the building, ensuring the Witch that she would be able to at least get a small degree of peace and refugee from the entire holiday.

She felt something fall down her cheek, but as she pushed it away with the sleeve of her sweater, no more attempted the journey down from her eyes, leaving her still appearing somewhat normal. As she reached the shade of the tree, she eased herself down until she was leaning against the bark, her head effectively collapsing onto the folded arms in front of her. Her red-hair falling around her face somewhat, considering the length that she had recently had it cut to, she closed her eyes in an attempt to block out the world around her.

Weren't things supposed to get easier? Time heals all wounds, and that kind of thing? It had been weeks, and still it made her chest hurt whenever she thought of how Oz had left her, had willingly gone away even though he had told her he loved her. Love was another thing that was supposed to heal everything, but obviously the mystical healing thing hadn't quite set in just yet. _Can this day just be over with?_

"H-H-Hey…" Raising her head as she heard a voice penetrated her ears, Willow finally let all of the pent up anger inside of her out, feelings that might be hurt be damned.

"Alright, look, some of us don't need to hear your happy-ass Valentine's Day stories, so why don't you just leav-" Stopping in the middle of her sentence as she realized who was standing near her, the red-head felt all of her anger begin to melt away. "Oh…hey."

"Y-Y-You're upset, I-I should go…" Turning to leave, Tara wrapped her arms around herself as the shock of hearing the other girl yell at her continued to circulate through her brain.

"Hey, no, I'm sorry. Valentine's Day nerves." Regret and embarrassment replacing the anger that had taken over her mind, Willow offered the other girl a small smile as she caught her attention. "Really, I didn't mean to snap at you like that."

"Are y-you sure?" Eying the red-head with her blue eyes, Tara remained rooted to the spot where she was standing, unsure if her presence was even wanted by the other girl. "I can l-leave…"

"I'm a hundred percent sure, I'm Ms. McSure." Patting the ground next to her, Willow offered the seemingly frightened girl a smile. "Come on, what's on your mind?"

"I…I was just w-w-wondering w-what you were doing…" Shyly sitting down onto the place where the other girl had touched, Tara curled her legs underneath her as she sat down. "Y-You seemed kinda upset."

"Again, just Valentine's Day. Not the best holiday for me recently."

"W-Why not?" Her expression changing just as the words had left her lips, the blonde Wiccan turned her gaze to the ground beneath her. "Nevermind, t-too personal…"

"No, it's fine. Everybody else probably knows why, so why shouldn't you?" Sighing, Willow pressed her head back against the tree. "I'm kinda celebrating it alone this year."

"Oh…I'm sorry." Her gaze still turned away from the other girl, Tara remained silent.

"It's fine. Guess I should have been a little bit more prepared for it all, with the whole being single again thing and all." Rolling her eyes, the red-headed Witch sighed again. "Not as easy as I thought it was gonna be."

"H-How did it happen?"

"He…he cheated on me…kinda. It's hard to explain. Long story short, he's gone, I'm here, I'm alone, end of story. Guess it wasn't as long as I thought."

"He c-cheated on y-you?" Finally lifting her gaze from the grass her hand was touching, Tara looked at the other girl's face. "W-Why…sorry, too personal again…"

"Really, it's fine. Gotta talk about it sometime." Turning her head so she was looking at the Wiccan, Willow managed to smile somewhat, although the expression was mixed with a barely contained sadness. "Guess you could say it was like they were…attracted to each other. Bad things happened, and I kinda, sorta walked in on them sleeping together."

"Oh, Goddess, I'm so sorry." Frowning, Tara found herself at a loss for what else to say. She had barely known Willow for five weeks now, and already she had pried more information out of her than she should have. "Maybe I should go..."

"Tara…" Turning her body slightly, the red-head felt her hand brush against the other girl's fingers. Something akin to a spark or a burst of static electricity passed through her skin and up into her body, causing her to jump slightly. "Sorry, little jumpy I guess."

"It's alright." Looking down at where Willow's fingers had brushed against hers, Tara could still feel the spark circulating in her palm. As the red-head pulled her hand back slightly, she felt something akin to disappointment flow through her, surprising herself. She knew that Willow was special, considering the kind of power that lay inside her, only just recently tapped, but having this kind of effect on her was something that she hadn't expected…although her heart made her feel like she wanted it.

"So, how about you? Nobody special you're spending the day with?" Trying her best to steer the conversation towards a possibly happier subject, Willow realized too late that she might be trying to pry her way into another person's life, a place where she might not be wanted. "Oh, god, sorry, way too personal of me to just ask out of the blue like that. Because you know that that could be kinda rude and stuff, which would make me Rudy McRudinson, and I don't want…"

As she heard Tara chuckling softly, Willow forced her mouth to close in an attempt to make the flow of words stop. _Oh, god, did I really just babble? Not good, not good, babbling leads to nervousness and sweaty palms, and having to explain…just stop, just stop. Talk, talking good…_

"So, as I said without the babbly funniness, why aren't you celebrating?"

"There's no-one really." Shaking her head somewhat nervously, Tara smiled slightly, her fingers still tracing the grass underneath her palm. "Never h-has been."

"I find that a little hard to believe." Smiling back at the other girl, Willow saw her gesture make the Wiccan smile even wider. "I mean no-one from the Wicca group?"

"They w-weren't really my friends…" Finally lifting her hand off of the grass, the blonde girl placed it upon the red-head's knee. "Not like you…"

"Well, that's good to know." Placing her hand atop the other girl's fingers, Willow smiled. "So, are we gonna do any spells later?"

"Do y-you want to?"

"Yeah, sure. I mean, after the day I've had, I'd like something to take my mind off of it." Still smiling the red-head reached for her bag. "I actually just picked up a new copy of 'Enchantments and Charms'. You can borrow it, if you want."

"Sure, that's be great."

"God knows that it would be more fun than me sitting around feeling mopey about…the V word." Seeing the confusion that had rapidly spread across the other girl's face, the Witch sighed. "Valentine's Day."

"Oh…"

"Really, let's just go somewhere else."

* * *

As she stepped into the room, Willow almost immediately felt some of the stress from her lonely Valentine's Day beginning to fade away as the dim lighting from Tara's room took away some of her stress.

"Sorry, it's a l-little messy." Shutting the door behind her, Tara pushed some of her blonde hair back behind her ears.

"No worries. Definitely no need for worries." Easing herself down onto the nearby bed, the red-head reached into her bag and pulled out the book she had been looking for. "I always like being here."

"Really?" As the word left her lips, Tara smiled.

"Really, really." Returning the smile, the Witch handed the other girl the book. "Here ya go."

"Thanks." Taking the offered volume, Tara flipped open the cover and skimmed through the first page.

"I always feel comfortable here." Seeing the circle that lay almost permanently set up in a corner of the room, the red-head undid the laces on her shoes. "It's like the entire room is kinda friendly."

"Willow-friendly." Smiling as she heard the other girl's words, the blonde Wiccan set the book down onto a nearby table. "Anything in particular you want to cast?"

"Something kinda simple. Gotta get the whole mojo thing working for me."

"Alright." Grabbing a box of matches from the table, Tara made her way towards the circle. "W-We can do that…"

* * *

"Sorry, I'm not in the best of moods today." Sighing, Willow got back onto her feet, her action extinguishing the candles that surrounded her. "Maybe I should just go back to my dorm…"

"Y-You don't have to…" Her gaze falling to the floor beneath her, Tara knew that the other girl was looking at her. "I mean, you could stay here…I don't mind, since no-one really ever comes around."

"Tara, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin your Valentine's Day as well." Frowning, the red-head took a few steps back until she was sitting in the middle of the circle again. "I'm being a McGrouch."

"It's alright." Smiling slightly, the Wiccan curled her legs underneath her. "I mean, you just got out of a relationship, and that can be kinda hurtful."

"Trust me, much more than hurtful." Finding herself unable to meet the other girl's gaze, Willow sighed. "I thought it would get a little easier, but surprise, surprise, no easier here."

"I think it's s-supposed to be like that." Frowning as she saw how uncomfortable the red-head was starting to become, Tara reached out and touched her knee. "Not that I w-would know."

"God, again, I'm sorry. I'm going around ruining people's moods. Call me 'Willow, the Slayer of good moods everywhere!'"

"Willow, it's alright, really, I understand."

"But I don't like being the Slayer of good moods." Frowning, the red-head looked up from the floor. "Me definitely no likey doing that kind of thing."

"It's alright, I don't think anyone likes ruining moods."

"It's just, I've only really ever had one person like me back the way that I liked him, and to have no-one around me know, it's kinda like being in a freaky flashback that you kinda don't want to live through again…do you know what I mean?"

"Sorta…"

"And I mean, the last time I really liked somebody before that, he ended up hooking up with a skunk-bag that we hated, but he obviously didn't hate her enough to not suck face with her." Rolling her eyes sarcastically, Willow sighed. "Kinda makes you feel low."

"Y-You don't have to feel like that though….because I…"

"What? You what?" Looking back at the stuttering Wiccan, Willow furrowed her brow. "You've got a 'I need to tell you something' face…"

"I…I…"

"Cause, I mean, you can tell me anything, I've already kinda told you my life-story and all…"

"Willow, I…I kinda like you…" Somehow managing to keep herself from stuttering, despite the overwhelming nervousness circulating inside her body, Tara saw the slight confusion making its way through the red-head's green eyes. "I m-mean, in a w-w-way that you might like somebody on Valentine's Day…"

"Like a friend?"

"Like I…really, really, really like you…" Her blue eyes still focusing solely on the other girl's face, Tara knew that she was making enough sense for Willow to understand properly. "I mean, like, I think you're amazing, and you're special…"

"Tara, um, are you trying to say that you want me to be your Valentine?" Her eyebrows lifting slightly, Willow knew her brain was already in the midst of a storm of confusion. She and Tara had briefly talked once or twice about how the Wiccan had come out only a year before the start of college and her move to Sunnydale, but hearing her talking like this…confusion definitely was taking its hold.

"S-S-Sorta…" Looking away as she felt her cheeks becoming warmer, the blonde Wiccan increased her hands grip on her legs. "I…I kinda l-like you a little more than that…"

"Oh…" Saying the word somewhat emotionless at first, Willow's green eyes perked up as her mind finally jump-started itself and realized what the other girl was trying to say. "Oh!"

"N-Nevermind, it w-w-was stupid of me to say…" Starting to get onto her feet, Tara wanted nothing more than to take back what she had just told Willow. _That was so stupid of me to tell her… _"Forget I s-said anything…"

"Tara, it's alright, you don't have to feel bad about it…I mean, I'm kinda shocked, but I'm not angry or anything." Pushing herself onto her own feet, the red-head came to stand behind where the other girl was standing with her back to the other Witch. "You don't have to hide from me."

"Y-Y-You don't like me back, because y-you're not l-l-like that…"

"No, that's not it, I…I think I do…I mean, I like hanging out with you, and I like casting spells with you, so I guess that could mean that I like you, because you know, most relationships start out with people hanging out and getting to know each other…" Nearly biting down on her tongue in order to prevent herself from babbling any further, Willow cautiously placed her hand on the other girl's shoulder. "Tara…I…I think I like you too…"

"A-Are you s-sure?" Her stuttering continuing without any sign of ending, Tara turned her head in order to look at the red-head standing behind her. "I m-m-mean, I w-w-wouldn't blame you if it's too awkward for y-y-you to do…"

"Tara, it's not awkward at all…I mean, in the fact that I'm not kinda sure how I feel, because my mind's all confusion-y right now."

"It's a-alright…" Remaining largely silent, Tara continued to keep her back to the other girl behind her, unsure of what else to say. Her green eyes still staring at the blonde Wiccan, Willow's mind continued to run around in circles inside her head.

"Do…do you want to kiss me?" As the words leaving her mouth surprised herself, Willow saw something in the other girl's blue irises change. "Ok, I was a little too direct with that…too early…way too early, I should go, this is kinda lot to take in, and because I'm babbling too much, and I can't seem to stop, oh, why can't I stop?"

"I…do y-y-you want to?" Her arms still wrapped around her chest, Tara kept her gaze focused on her feet, even as she turned around. "I w-w-wouldn't be angry if y-y-you didn't want to…"

"I…I guess I do…" Taking a cautious step towards where Tara was standing, Willow closed her eyes for a moment as she tried to think of how to approach what she had suggested. "I mean, I don't really know how we can do this, but…"

Her words trailing off, the red-head saw Tara take a step towards her until they were almost standing face to face. Finally looking up, the Wiccan looked into the other girl's green eyes. Acting on the urge she felt before her shy nature forced her to back down, the blonde girl slowly leaned in and pressed her lips against Willow's. Her eyes flooding with shock for a single moment, Willow closed her eyes as she felt her heart-beat continuing to increase inside her chest. The thought of what was happening continued to overwhelm her mind, but as she closed her eyes and set her hands against the other girl's shoulders, she felt all of her thoughts beginning to drift away.

Keeping her hands on her own body, Tara kept her eyes closed as well, unsure if seeing the other girl's face would cause her to break the kiss that she had instigated. Forcing her tongue to remain in her own mouth, the blonde Wiccan tilted her head slightly as she and Willow continued to kiss. Their lips seemingly fitting together perfectly, the two girls felt every sense besides touch begin to fade away along with any stray thoughts of possible nervousness or hesitation.

Finally pulling away at the same time, Tara and Willow stood looking at each other, unsure of what the other was going to say. Her fingers on her left hand trailing along her lips, the red-head kept her gaze on the Wiccan standing in front of her.

"That was…um, neat?" Unsure of what to say, Willow felt a small sense of relief that she hadn't started to babble again. Watching the red-head from where she was standing, Tara smiled slightly.

"Y-Yeah…neat."

"Um, what time is it?" Looking around the room for a clock, the Witch finally found one, and as she read the numbers awaiting her, she headed for where her shoes still laid undisturbed on the floor. "I should go…"

"Oh… alright."

"No, no, it's not because of you!" Afraid of what the other girl might be feeling, Willow turned back towards Tara with one of her shoes in her hand. "Buffy might be looking for me, you know, annual Slaying night, and all. She might need me."

"Right…"

Gathering her bag from where it lay on the bed, Willow saw the other girl standing by the door, her eyes again focused on the floor. Frowning, the red-head crossed the floor and arrived at the spot in front of the door.

"Tara?" Hearing her name, the blonde girl looked up. Casting a smile at the other girl, Willow's green eyes beamed somewhat. "Thanks for making my day better."

"Y-You're welcome." Returning the smile somewhat shyly, Tara felt the red-head give her a small kiss on her cheek as she opened the door. Stepping out in the hallway, Willow gave one last smile at the Wiccan before she started back down the hallway. Watching her leave, Tara smiled as she could still feel the sensations of the other girl's lips on hers. Shutting the door behind her, the Wiccan chuckled as she saw one of the red-head's shoes still lying on the floor near the bed. _She'll come back…_

Closing her eyes, Tara Maclay felt happiness in her heart for the first moment in a long time, and she smiled.


End file.
